


Patching Up

by Fulcrumisthebomb



Category: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2014
Genre: Gen, cute fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-08-09
Updated: 2014-08-09
Packaged: 2018-02-12 12:09:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 882
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2109390
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Fulcrumisthebomb/pseuds/Fulcrumisthebomb
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Donnie frets over his slipshod patchjob on Raph's shell.</p><p>Minor spoilers for the 2014 movie</p>
            </blockquote>





	Patching Up

**Author's Note:**

> I was a bit puzzled they didn't mention Raph's cracked shell in the latter half of the movie. While this could be explained away by their rapid healing, I don't see Donnie letting that go, no matter how busy they had been.

The large slashes of tape across Raphael's shell were at horribly mismatched angles. True, they all  _had_  been in a hurry and Donnie had used what he could find in his bags, but the makeshift bandages were sloppy. Shoddy work. Ugh, he couldn't stop staring at the jagged edges and crisscrossed shapes. None of his family ever expected battlefield triage to be neat and tidy, but dammit, Donnie had _standards_ and there was no excuse for that  _monstrosity_ on Raph's shell.

It felt like days, but it was merely hours before events had quieted and they had returned to the sewers and what was left of their home. Sensei was safely recovering, Leo was sleeping off the aftereffects of the adrenaline, and the rest of them were salvaging what they could. Fortunately their years of living off the city's refuse had trained them to see treasure amongst the trash; unfortunately, most of the more delicate equipment Donnie had patched together over the years had been ruined beyond repair. 

" _Geez_ this is bad," Raph muttered somewhere off to Donnie's right. "S'like someone pumped Mikey full of sugar and let him loose."

Donnie laughed as he scuffed some rubble to the side, waving his hand in front of his face as it kicked up a cloud of dust. "Tazmanian Mikey," he agreed, then frowned and glanced over at his brother. "Don't tell him I said that; he'll insist on being called that for days."

" _Weeks_ ," Raphael corrected with a grin. "And sure... always good to have more stuff to blackmail you with, Donnie."

"Yes, I... What?" Donnie wrinkled his nose at Raphael before crouching next to an upturned table. "I have no idea what you are talking about, Raphie. I'll deny everything."

"Uh huh." 

They worked in companionable silence, occasionally lobbing bits of junk at each other with jovial insults. As terrifying as it was to see their home in ruins, Donnie knew they hadn't lost what truly mattered- as soppy as that sounded. They may not have a safe place to rest, but he always had a place in his family. It didn't matter where they were, as long as they were together. 

He snorted, amused by his thoughts. It wasn't like Donnie to dwell on mushy feelings, but, well, Raph's " _ohshit we're gonna die_ " speech had struck Donnie to his core. If both he and Raph harboured that same insecurity, did Leo? Mikey? Donnie shuddered. Did their  _father?_  Was that normal, in a twisted sense of the word?

"Yo, brainiac, stop spacing out and gimme a hand here."

Donnie started, giving Raph an apologetic smile as he crawled over the growing pile of rubble. Raph was yanking on a half-buried strongbox, his grimy fingers slipping on the edges with each pull. "Oh, you found it! Stop, stop, that's pointless," Donnie said crisply. "Help me fashion a lever."

"A what?"

Donnie paused, biting his lower lip as he scanned the immediate area. "Grab those metal beams so we can ease the pressure on the container."

Raphael nodded, lunging forward and wrapping himself around the fallen ceiling structures. They hadn't lost too many load-bearing supports, but all the same, Donnie would feel safer once they retreated to the inner rooms- and his line of thought was lost as those glaring mismatched swathes of tape faced him.

"Wait,  _stop_ , wait right there," Donnie said firmly, knocking a fist against Raphael's shoulder before he scurried toward the far end of the room. He had made it a priority to clear out the infirmary area first, so one of their many first aid kits had already been recovered and set aside for further emergencies. He scooped it up and ran back to Raphael, who gave a soft growl as he approached.

"No no no,  _m'fine_ ," Raphael insisted, waving his hands as he stumbled backwards. "M'fine!"

"I just want to replace that duct tape with actual bandages," Donnie sighed, beckoning Raph with a crooked finger. "It won't hurt."

"No, really, leave it, Donnie." Raphael twisted his head, squinting over the lip of his shell. "S'okay."

"It's _not_ okay," Donnie fumed. "It's misshapen and sloppy. I couldn't even cover the entire stressline fractures, so let me-,"

"I like it!"

Donnie paused, eyes narrowing. "What?"

Raphael's worried frown melted into a broad, bright smile. "I dunno how you do it, but you find the neatest shit. Green duck tape, that's pretty awesome, Donnie."

" _Duct_ tape," Donnie corrected absently, leaning to one side to look over his earlier handiwork again. He gestured helplessly, confused. "Raph, it's  _peeling off._  Just let me replace it with-,"

"No!" Raphael planted his fists on his hips, glaring defiantly. "It's cool and I'm keeping it. 'Sides, I don't need fresh bandages anyway." He rolled a shoulder experimentally, flashing a triumphant smile. "Doesn't hurt a bit. It's already healed over."

"I-," Donnie tilted his head, perplexed and amused by Raphael's reaction. He tugged down his goggles, running a deep tissue scan twice before he sighed and shrugged. "Fine. You win, you hatchling."

Raphael's whoop of joy was cut short by the insult; seconds later Donnie's vision was filled with a blurr of red and green as his brother tackled him, the thick fingers finding all of Donnie's well-hidden ticklish spots and sending them both into howling laughter.


End file.
